24 hours in the Amazonas jungle: passengers of Saeta Peru flight were finally rescued

This Friday (14) the rescue of the 10 passengers and 2 pilots of the Cessna Caravan of Saeta, registration OB-2228 was finally completed, after suffering an accident on Thursday morning.

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At around 9:10 (local time) yesterday, the aircraft had to make an emergency landing in a swamp five minutes after departing from San Lorenzo Airport, in the department of Loreto, in northern Peru. It was on a 40-minute flight to Tarapoto Airport.

According to initial local press reports, the Caravan hit several birds during the ascent and immediately failed the engine. SAETA informed through a press release that the pilots had to land 14 nautical miles from San Lorenzo airport in a swampy area of the Jeberos jungle. After the report of the pilots’ maneuver, the Search and Rescue System (SAR) managed by the Peruvian Air Force (FAP) was activated to locate the aircraft and its occupants in a Mi-17 helicopter and crew of the Air Group No. 3.

The FAP also sent a Twin Otter to San Lorenzo with rescuers, medical personnel and investigators.

FAP Captain José Alonso Guzzi Ramos Olmos confirmed the following: «After flying over the area, we were able to communicate with the pilot of the Cessna that crashed and he assured us that the passengers were stable, although with some injuries due to the blows».

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The company reported that the location of the accident made evacuation tasks difficult, therefore, the FAP helicopter could not land, but a team of brigadiers descended to attend and provide food and water to the occupants of the aircraft and to prepare a landing zone for the Mi-17.

After more than 24 hours, around 14:00 (local time) the rescue of all the occupants began. In the first instance, they will be attended by health personnel in San Lorenzo and then transferred to Tarapoto.

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This is Saeta’s second accident so far this year. Last September 20, a Jetstream 32 failed to take off from El Estrecho airfield, Department of Loreto, causing the death of one person and ten seriously injured among its 17 occupants.

The company defines itself as «the airline of the Peruvian Amazon, serving 16 cities and small towns in the region.